Union's Jeff Parke gets call to U.S. training camp

By MATTHEW De GEORGE

Sunday, January 6, 2013

One of the newest members of the Philadelphia Union will be headed to a U.S. Soccer training camp starting today.

Defender Jeff Parke was among 25 players called up by men's national team coach Jurgen Klinsmann to attend a 20-day training camp in Carson, Calif., geared toward players based in American and Scandinavian leagues in their offseasons.

The 30-year-old Parke was called up to the corresponding camp last year and earned his first cap Jan. 25 as a substitute in a friendly against Panama. This year's camp will conclude with a friendly against Canada in Houston Jan. 29 to kick of the 2013 calendar ahead of the United States' participation in the hexagonal round of CONCACAF World Cup qualifying.

Parke was acquired by the Union after three seasons with the Seattle Sounders Dec. 7 for allocation money and a pick in the 2013 MLS Supplemental Draft. The native of Abington and Downingtown High School and Drexel alumnus is a veteran of eight MLS seasons.